Kelly Driscoll

Do you have any skincare pet peeves?

I have a few, but one of mine is when a product is listed as being appropriate for: oily, combo, dry, acne prone and sensitive.

Come on, really. ALL skin types?!

And sometimes it’s true. Sometimes there’s such a thing as a universal product, good for all skin types… but they are far and few between, aren’t they?

So whenever a brand claims this, I’m skeptical.

And when I tried Cosrx Balancium Comfort Ceramide Cream, I admit I had my reservations, not only about its universal product claim (let’s talk about that later) but also their use of ingredients and claims of barrier care.

But let’s start from the beginning.

Cosrx Balancium Comfort Ceramide Cream – What is it?

Cosrx Balancium Comfort Ceramide Cream is a moisturizer that claims to soothe and moisturize your skin while providing protection for your moisture barrier.

The texture of this cream was a bit unexpected. When I think comfort cream, I think thick, fluffy and white cream. What comes out is more salve/balm like in consistency, semi-opaque white, almost like a thick Neosporin.

This has a very rich feel to it on the skin, it almost melts into the skin like butter as you spread it. It feels like a mix between an oil and cream and absorbs down quickly but leaves a bit of a protective film or barrier on the top of the skin with a medium weight feel. The best way to describe it is as very ointment like.

Ingredients

Ceramides: 10,000 ppm to be exact. Ceramides are pretty hot in skincare right now, seems like all the brands want to boast that their product contains the all holy ceramides. And I’m not mad about the trend because ceramides really are a fantastically beneficial ingredient for skin.

Ceramides are found naturally in our skin, making up about 50% of it with the highest concentration being found in your moisture barrier. Because our skin already produces ceramides, when we apply them topically through skincare our skin accepts and is able to use it better than say, ginseng. This makes ceramides as a skincare ingredient “skin identical.”

Centella Leaf Water: You might be surprised to learn that the Comfort Ceramide Cream’s first ingredient listed is centella leaf water. In fact, 50% of this cream is comprised of centella leaf water! And that’s a good thing. Centella is incredibly soothing and healing to the skin, so it will definitely contribute to the “comfort” in the Comfort Ceramide Cream.

But why so much centella?

Centella leaf water is actually replacing water or other filler/diluters that can be used in skincare. All skincare needs to be diluted and filled out, unfortunately we can’t just put the straight ingredients on our skin without a little buffer. A very cheap, and annoying, way to do this is with water (aqua). While water is not harmful to the skin, it really only works to help the formula of the product, not the benefits for our skin. By replacing plain old water with centella leaf water, we are getting the additional benefits in addition to its function in the formulation of the cream.

In addition to the leaf water, there is also the isolated properties of centella, madecassic acid, asiaticoside, and asiatic acid included.

Barrier Restoring Ingredients: The ceramides are the stars here but this cream also includes supporting barrier players like multiple fatty acids, linoleic acid (in the form of sunflower seed oil), niacinamide and glycerin.

FYI: This cream contains two types of silicones, palm oil and a touch of bergamot oil (used for fragrance).

Ingredients: Centella Asiatica Leaf Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Helianthus Annuus(Sunflower) Seed Oil, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Cetearyl Alcohol, Betaine, 1,2- Hexanediol, Cetearyl Olivate, Sorbitan Olivate, Ceramide NP, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Sucrose Distearate, Glyceryl Stearate, Dipropylene Glycol, Elaeis Guineensis (Palm) Oil, Elaeis Guineensis (Palm) Kernel Oil, BeesWax, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Ethylhexylglycerin, Cyclomethicone, Dimethicone/VinylDimethicone Crosspolymer, Panthenol, Niacinamide, Sodium Hyaluronate, Xanthan Gum, Asiaticoside, Asiatic acid, Madecassic acid, Cassia Obtusifolia Seed Extract, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia (Bergamot) Fruit Oil

Performance

This cream really is a dry skin savior. Winter always takes a toll on my skin, and my dehydrated skin turns dehydrated dry and craves way more moisture than any other time of year. I complicated matters recently by starting to add in retinol for the first time (notorious for making skin dry and flaky). Let’s just say my skin needs all the moisturizing comfort it can get.

And this cream really delivers on that front! I found this to be very comforting and protective for my skin. This completely keeps the dry patches and flakes under control while also making my dry skin feel comfortable and soothed.

I found this slightly tricky to use in the morning, especially when layering on sunscreen and makeup right away. This has a little bit of a rich and oily barrier that it creates on the skin. I usually don’t mind this and it does absorb down in time (few hours), but not a good choice for those short on time in the mornings. It was doable but a touch tricky.

Who Is This Cream Best For?

Here’s what gets me about this cream. Cosrx claims in their marketing materials that this cream is a “universal product” good for all skin types and all climates.

Say what now?

There is no way this cream is for all skin types. After everything I described about it, especially the texture, weight and barrier it creates on top of the skin, does this sound like something that would be excellent for, say, oily skin?

No way, no how.

Especially given the weight of this cream and its very emollient feel, I really don’t see this cream working well in humid environments.

No, this cream is best reserved for dry skin types and dry environments. This is excellent for those that suffer from winterized skin, wind burn, chapped skin, retinol dryness and sensitivity.

It’s too bad it’s not being marketed for the dry skin gem that it truly is.

Cosrx Balancium Comfort Ceramide Cream retails for $26 for 80g tube | Amazon* | Jolse | Yesstyle* |

*Indicates use of affiliate links that pay a small commission to help run this blog.

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Product bought with store credit provided by jolse.com for purpose of review